From the preliminary tasks I had learnt how to create footage that flowed smoothly and matched between shots. We looked at how match on action is made and how to shoot a scene, for example the 180 degree rule. Although I didn't use this rule in my final piece, it was helpful to know when giving feedback to other media students.
Another thing I have learnt and improved on is the composition and lighting in shots. For example, at the start of the preliminary tasks my shooting would be dark and the composition not well thought about which lead to noticeable differences in each shot. For the final task I focused a lot on lighting to try and make the right atmosphere and match in each clip.
In the preliminary task we didn't take many shots, we just took a few to make it easier, however I learnt that it wasn't made easier as it was difficult to edit with a small number of shots. In the final project I found it much easier that we had a variety of different shots and angles to choose from when it came to editing as I was able to decide which shot was best for the scene.
Another thing in which I had improved on from the preliminary task is the use of sound. In the continuity task and other preliminary tasks I didn't use any sound effects. The sounds were quite raw as I had only recorded them with the camera I was using. For the final cut I made a set of music on Garage Band to place over the top of the sounds in the film as they were also quite raw. I also used sound effects such as the door creaking to place over the top of the music to emphasise the action.

Evaluation Question 6

Evaluation Question 1

In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?

http://youtu.be/hDadMYIj7QY

Evaluation Question 5

Evaluation Question 3 SCRIPT

I: Hello and welcome to BBC Radio 2. Today I am joined by Rhiannon Ingham, producer of the new hit film Caught Red Handed, to talk about the film and the industry. Welcome, Rhiannon.

R: Hello I, thank you for inviting me on the show.

I: So, your film is produced in association with Owl Entertainment, I hear this new production company is set to expand in the upcoming months.

R: Yes that's right. Owl Entertainment started very small with very little funding, but we've been given sponsors to enable us to reach larger films and collaborate with bigger companies such as Universal Studios.

I: How did you manage to fund your film, and how do films like yours get their finance?

R: Some companies can get government grants, where a council may finance the film if all or part of the film was shot in that area. There are also tax incentives and shelters. With a British Tax Shelter, which aims to minimise tax costs of the film. These can be applied if that part of the film is shot in Britain and the majority of cast and crew are British. There are other ways, such as having private investors looking to show more risk-taking opportunities on their record. Pre-sales are another way of financing a film by selling the rights to it before the film is made.

I: Where did the name, Owl Entertainment, come from?

R: It's not a very interesting story, I knew I wanted to create a production company and I was stuck for names. The name came to me when I was at the zoo looking at an owl enclosure. I thought that Entertainment would fit well with it and it has a good ring to it. Owl Entertainment, it just flows.

I: I totally agree, so I'm guessing the logo came about the same way?

R: Yeah, the logo is an owl in flight. When I was making the ident, I was playing around with Photoshop. I erased the background of the pictures of the owl, took away the colour and made it look a bit like it's from a comic book. The logo itself is a still from the ident with Owl Entertainment spelled under it's wing.

I: So, we know the production companies are involved in making films, but what do they actually do?

R: A production company is the company responsible for the actual production of film or television from script writing, casting, filming, post-production, distribution and marketing. We're responsible for funding and selling the products to studios and cinemas.

I: You mention distributing, what is a film distributor and what do they do?

R: Okay, so a film distributor is a person or a company who are responsible for marketing the film. They can set the release dates of films and decide how they are marketed like DVD, in the cinema, etc. They're also in control of posters, TV commercials, newspaper and magazine adverts and many other types of advertisements. 

I: Why are some people mentioned in the titles?

R: In the title sequence I included all the people who had worked on the film. There are a range of people to fit each job.

I: What are the jobs that appear in the titles?

R: We have a number of jobs included in the opening sequence. We have the producer, editor and director, actors, camera operating, costume design, hair and make up and the music producer. They appear in the order of the most popular above the line talent to the least.

I: How has your film been released?

R: We decided to release the film simultaneously on all areas of media such as Cinema, VOD, DVD and television broadcast as it is quite a low budget film and would have made the biggest profit from this route. A film that has been released in a similar way is A Field In England, which was a low budget British film released simultaneously. It was the first film to be released this way.

I: That's all we have time for today I'm afraid. Thank you, Rhiannon, for taking the time to be here to discuss the film industry and how it works. If you want to see Rhiannon star in the new film Caught Red Handed, it's in cinemas near you now.

R: Thank you, it's been a pleasure.

Evaluation Question 2

 The character I play in the film opening sequence is an innocent girl/woman who is very aware of her surroundings and gets a bit hysterical about things which happen out of the ordinary. This is quite stereotypical of a girl in a thriller film as they are usually portrayed as weak and emotional or damsels in distress that need saving. 

My character is very much alike to Renai on Insidious. She is a mum who is usually alone in a large house who happens to hear unusual things and gets spooked by them. Like my character, she tends to investigate what is going on and seems to be the only person who notices and is effected by what happens. Renai is attacked by an antagonist in the film like I am in the opening sequence. 

There are some differences between my character and Renai. One being that she is able to get help from family where as mine is alone throughout. Another difference is that she is being scared of a paranormal being and my character is frightened by an actual being.

Another character which is similar to mine is Mary Sandin on The Purge. She is also a mum (unlike my character) living in a big house. Similar to my character, she is very wary of what is going on in her home as people break in to it. She is very innocent, emotional and undeserving of what happens to her in the film which is very like my character. She is punished, along with the rest of her family, for helping out a man who was about to be murdered. She tries to hide and protect herself and her family.

Unlike my character, she is able to prepare and defend herself with weapons as she knows that she will be in danger before the villains break into the house.

All three characters are similar in many ways. They are also stereotypical of women in thriller/horror films as they are shown as being weak and unable to defend themselves on their own. They are portrayed as being dependent on a man and very scared of what happens.

Evaluation Question 4

Cameron is an 18 year old living in California. He enjoys doing a range of leisure activities in his spare time such as playing football, skateboarding, going to the cinema and playing volleyball. During this time, Cameron tends to talk about things that he finds interesting with his friends, such as new film releases and football results. 

 He uses a variety of social networking sites, however the ones he uses the most are Twitter and Vine where he has somewhat of a fan base. He likes to share his viewpoints and opinions on certain things on these sites, which also helps to promote them to his followers.
He tends to access films in a variety of ways. The main ways in which he does this is by going to the cinema or viewing the films on websites such as Netflix. He likes to have the cinema experience of watching a film and being able to watch it with a lot of friends. He also likes Netflix because it's easily accessible so he can watch films whenever he wants to.
His favourite films include The Purge, Olympus Has Fallen, Taken, Insidious and Batman: The Dark Knight Rises. These films clearly fall into a particular genre which is Action Thriller. He likes to be scared by films and put on the edge of his seat. He takes his friends along to see new films with him so they can be scared too. Sherlock is one of his favourite television shows as he likes to work out and analyse things to do with crime and 'who done it.' He tends to figure out who done it before the detectives do in shows and films like Sherlock and finds that having several plot twists makes it more interesting as it's harder to figure out.

Cameron will probably find out about the film and decide to watch it by seeing advertisements on social networking sites which he uses such as Twitter and also in the trailers at the cinema before a screening. He may also hear about it through word of mouth when he is socializing with his friends. I think he would enjoy our film as it fits well with the genre of films that he likes. He will be able to try and figure out how it'll end and 'who done it' but there may be quite a few plot twists which will keep him engaged.